Todd Czinege named first team All Big East
Todd Czinege was named All Big East this past season. Todd, a former Mudcat, is seen here throwing out the first pitch at opening night of the Mudcat season.
Click on the link to read about Todd and his year at Villanova.
http://www.villanova.com/sports/m-basebl/spec-rel/052516aaa.html
Click on the link to read about Todd and his year at Villanova.
http://www.villanova.com/sports/m-basebl/spec-rel/052516aaa.html
Caleb Joseph second ex-Mudcat in majors
By PAUL STURM, Constitution-Tribune Sports Editor
After waiting 12 years from their inception to have its first former member appear in a Major League Baseball game, the Chillicothe Mudcats on May 7, 2014, got their second alumnus to the big leagues in two months.
Catcher Caleb Joseph, the local, college-level, summer club’s primary receiver in the club's MINK League title-winning 2006 season after appearing in 18 games the season before, had his contract purchased by the Orioles from their Triple-A farm club at Norfolk, Va.
He immediately made his MLB debut as Baltimore's starting catcher May 8 at Tampa Bay. He caught the entire game, which the Orioles won 4-3, while going hitless in three at-bats with two groundouts to third and a fly out to right field. He went 0 for four while starting the next night, as well, another game won by Baltimore.
Joseph could be considered the first "true" ex-Mudcat to play in the majors.
Pitcher Mike Mariot, called up to the Kansas City Royals in mid-April, played with the Mudcats only in two postseason games following the 2009 regular season. He had spent the regular summer season that year with the now-defunct Beatrice (Neb.) Bruins. Mariot never appeared in a game in Chillicothe as a Mudcat, although he did play here with the Nebraska team.
Joseph, on the other hand, spent two summers in Chillicothe, hosted both years by John and Julie Barnes.
The Franklin, Tenn., product, who attended Lipscomb University in his home state, actually was just out of high school in his first year with the Mudcats in 2005.
Sharing time behind the dish with two other, older catchers, Joseph batted a respectable .289 in 45 at-bats and threw out four of 10 would-be opposing base stealers, a strong statistic.
Returning the next season as the team’s top receiver, he again hit decently with the wood bat – a .280 batting average with 14 runs batted in in 34 games and, showing growing strength, eight extra-base hits
His play helped the Mudcats win the league crown for the first time, qualifying them for their first National Baseball Congress World Series tournament appearance. Two losses in that event left the club, led by Keith Vorhoff, with a 27-13 final record, still the team’s best ever mark.
Defensively, Joseph remained solid in ’06, gunning down 13 of 33 would-be base thieves while helping guide the pitching staff to a solid 3.55 composite earned run average.
After playing parts of seven seasons in the Orioles' system after being a seventh-round draft choice by the organization in 2007, Joseph seemingly had stalled out in his pro career a couple of years ago.
However, a resurgent season at Double-A Bowie last season, when he hit .299 with some extra-base pop, and a good stretch in winter ball in the Venezuelan League last winter, paid off yesterday when he was Baltimore's choice to fill the void behind the plate created when a shoulder injury to Orioles starting catcher Matt Wieters left Wieters not well enough to catch.
Seeking a reliable defensive receiver with some veteran savvy, even if at the minor league level, Baltimore turned to Joseph, who had been to spring training with them as a "depth" catcher the past few years.
“He’s kind of been a steady climber,” highly-respected Orioles manager “Buck” Showalter told The Baltimore Sun in an article posted on that paper’s website late last night. “He really wants this. A lot of guys, this gets tough to keep grinding through and improving. … Caleb has gotten better and better and better.
“The one common thing, pitchers really like throwing to him. [He is] very engaged in the game. I think he’ll be a quick study with advanced reports.”
Ironically, Joseph's recall to the Orioles comes only a week before Baltimore is scheduled to visit Kansas City for a 4-game series, starting Thursday, May 15.
Although it is possible either could be sent back to the minors before then, particularly depending on how Wieters' shoulder responds to being off from catching for a few days, that series could find both ex-Mudcats players in the same big league ballpark and potentially facing each other in a major league game.
--
Paul Sturm
Sports Editor
Constitution-Tribune
After waiting 12 years from their inception to have its first former member appear in a Major League Baseball game, the Chillicothe Mudcats on May 7, 2014, got their second alumnus to the big leagues in two months.
Catcher Caleb Joseph, the local, college-level, summer club’s primary receiver in the club's MINK League title-winning 2006 season after appearing in 18 games the season before, had his contract purchased by the Orioles from their Triple-A farm club at Norfolk, Va.
He immediately made his MLB debut as Baltimore's starting catcher May 8 at Tampa Bay. He caught the entire game, which the Orioles won 4-3, while going hitless in three at-bats with two groundouts to third and a fly out to right field. He went 0 for four while starting the next night, as well, another game won by Baltimore.
Joseph could be considered the first "true" ex-Mudcat to play in the majors.
Pitcher Mike Mariot, called up to the Kansas City Royals in mid-April, played with the Mudcats only in two postseason games following the 2009 regular season. He had spent the regular summer season that year with the now-defunct Beatrice (Neb.) Bruins. Mariot never appeared in a game in Chillicothe as a Mudcat, although he did play here with the Nebraska team.
Joseph, on the other hand, spent two summers in Chillicothe, hosted both years by John and Julie Barnes.
The Franklin, Tenn., product, who attended Lipscomb University in his home state, actually was just out of high school in his first year with the Mudcats in 2005.
Sharing time behind the dish with two other, older catchers, Joseph batted a respectable .289 in 45 at-bats and threw out four of 10 would-be opposing base stealers, a strong statistic.
Returning the next season as the team’s top receiver, he again hit decently with the wood bat – a .280 batting average with 14 runs batted in in 34 games and, showing growing strength, eight extra-base hits
His play helped the Mudcats win the league crown for the first time, qualifying them for their first National Baseball Congress World Series tournament appearance. Two losses in that event left the club, led by Keith Vorhoff, with a 27-13 final record, still the team’s best ever mark.
Defensively, Joseph remained solid in ’06, gunning down 13 of 33 would-be base thieves while helping guide the pitching staff to a solid 3.55 composite earned run average.
After playing parts of seven seasons in the Orioles' system after being a seventh-round draft choice by the organization in 2007, Joseph seemingly had stalled out in his pro career a couple of years ago.
However, a resurgent season at Double-A Bowie last season, when he hit .299 with some extra-base pop, and a good stretch in winter ball in the Venezuelan League last winter, paid off yesterday when he was Baltimore's choice to fill the void behind the plate created when a shoulder injury to Orioles starting catcher Matt Wieters left Wieters not well enough to catch.
Seeking a reliable defensive receiver with some veteran savvy, even if at the minor league level, Baltimore turned to Joseph, who had been to spring training with them as a "depth" catcher the past few years.
“He’s kind of been a steady climber,” highly-respected Orioles manager “Buck” Showalter told The Baltimore Sun in an article posted on that paper’s website late last night. “He really wants this. A lot of guys, this gets tough to keep grinding through and improving. … Caleb has gotten better and better and better.
“The one common thing, pitchers really like throwing to him. [He is] very engaged in the game. I think he’ll be a quick study with advanced reports.”
Ironically, Joseph's recall to the Orioles comes only a week before Baltimore is scheduled to visit Kansas City for a 4-game series, starting Thursday, May 15.
Although it is possible either could be sent back to the minors before then, particularly depending on how Wieters' shoulder responds to being off from catching for a few days, that series could find both ex-Mudcats players in the same big league ballpark and potentially facing each other in a major league game.
--
Paul Sturm
Sports Editor
Constitution-Tribune
